PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Wausau, WI

61.1
Life Score / 100
A-
Grade (curved)
#41
of 387 metros
89%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census

The verdict

Wausau ranks #41 of 387 US metros, ahead of 89% - carried by its environment (96/100) and held back most by childcare (39/100).

96
strongest: Environment
73
then: Rent
39
weakest: Childcare
7
weighted dimensions

Where Wausau sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

61 Top 11% higher than 89% of 387 US metros

25–30: 1 US metros (0%). Below this entry. 30–35: 16 US metros (4%). Below this entry. 35–40: 46 US metros (12%). Below this entry. 40–45: 53 US metros (14%). Below this entry. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Below this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Below this entry. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). Below this entry. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). This entry sits in this band. 65–70: 12 US metros (3%). Above this entry. 70–75: 3 US metros (1%). Above this entry. This metro 25 75 every US metro, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainCompare composite of BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, EPA data · May 2026

How the score is built

Reading the Wausau Life Score

Wausau's composite score of 61.1 out of 100, a grade of A-, places the metro at rank #41 of 387, ahead of 89% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Environment (96/100) and Rent (73/100), which pull the composite upward, while Childcare (39/100) and Schools (49/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 92.7 (rent-RPP 71.5). BLS median salary $63,772, 63,730 jobs (Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Registered Nurses). HUD 2BR FMR $1,147/mo (studio $791).

FBI UCR (WI): 280 violent, 1157 property/100K. NCES: 14.4:1 ratio, 10.7% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,256/yr. EPA: 46 Superfund sites (WI). Ranks #38-#44 below.

Dimension detail

How Wausau scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 58/100 (20%)
Wages 56/100 (20%)
Rent 73/100 (15%)
Safety 60/100 (15%)
Schools 49/100 (10%)
Childcare 39/100 (10%)
Environment 96/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

92.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$63,772
Avg Median Salary
$1,147
2BR Fair Market Rent
280
Violent Crime/100K (WI)
14.4:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,256
Infant Childcare/yr (WI)
46
Superfund Sites (WI)
63,730
Total Employment

Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level where metro-specific data is unavailable.

Compare Wausau With...

Wausau vs Duluth Compare → Wausau vs Oshkosh Compare → Wausau vs Sheboygan Compare → Wausau vs Wildwood Compare → Wausau vs Waterloo Compare → Wausau vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Wausau outranks 89% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#38 Lafayette, LA 61.2 A-
#39 Sandusky, OH 61.4 A-
#40 Elizabethtown, KY 61.4 A
#41 Wausau, WI 61.1 A-
#42 Muncie, IN 61.0 A-
#43 Wichita, KS 60.9 A-
#44 Twin Falls, ID * 60.8 A-

WI Metro Scores

Duluth, MN-WI A- 60.2 Oshkosh-Neenah, WI A- 60.1 Sheboygan, WI A- 59.8 La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN A- 59.1 Madison, WI B+ 56.9 Fond du Lac, WI B+ 55.6

Using Wausau's Life Score

Wausau is a regional baseline, not a neighborhood reading, use it to shortlist, then dig into the dimensions that matter to you.

  • Its strongest dimension is environment (96/100) and its weakest is childcare (39/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Wausau head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Wausau lands on the national rankings for cost, safety, pay and more. Browse rankings

Scores summarize federal data at the metro level; crime, schools and cost vary widely within a single metro.

Explore more

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Wausau's biggest strengths? ▼
Wausau's strongest dimensions are Environment (96/100), Rent (73/100), Safety (60/100). Environment is top-tier nationally.
What are Wausau's weakest areas? ▼
Wausau's lowest-scoring dimensions are Childcare (39/100), Schools (49/100), Wages (56/100). Childcare weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Wausau compared to the national average? ▼
Wausau's Regional Price Parity is 92.7 (7.3% less than national); rent RPP 71.5.
What is the average salary in Wausau? ▼
Wausau median salary: $63,772, 63,730 jobs. Top: Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Registered Nurses.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Wausau's 61.1/100 blends 7 federal-data dimensions - see our methodology page for the weighting.

Research Guides

Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.

Related

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - multi-dimension demographic + housing + income aggregates for cross-area comparison. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BEA Regional Economic Accounts - GDP, personal income, employment by state and metro. bea.gov/data/regional
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) - wage estimates for comparable-area indexing. bls.gov/oes
  • FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - crime statistics for safety-score component. fbi.gov/ucr
  • NCES Common Core of Data - public-school quality indicators by area. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • EPA AirNow + Air Quality System (AQS) - air-quality measurements by area. epa.gov/outdoor-air-quality-data
  • HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR) - county and metro housing-cost indicators. huduser.gov/datasets/fmr

Every figure on PlainCompare is loaded directly from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OEWS, NCES, DOL, EPA, and the Census Bureau, no number is typed in by an editor. This metro's Life Score is computed directly from the 7 federal sources cited above. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.